A major logistics company has committed to moving away from diesel as a fuel, with the introduction of LNG (liquid natural gas) powered vehicles for longer haulage, and plans to use electric vehicles in city centres.

Clipper Logistics has introduced 11 new vehicles powered by LNG, which have a range of 1,500km – double that of a diesel vehicle. The new vehicles, together with 16 new trailers, have the capacity to reduce trunking requirements by 20%.

Mick Doe, transport operations director of Clipper Logistics, said: “As a business, we recognise we are high mileage road users, but we are committed to reducing unnecessary road miles, and ensuring that what we do accumulate is cleaner. This is only the first step in our fleet renewal strategy, which will see us move away from diesel powered vehicles, adopt additional LNG vehicles and trailers, while also introducing electric rigid vehicles for transport in city centres, where possible.”

The new double decker trailers are two metres longer than previously allowed and use regulations operating under a special license from the government as part of a trial to reduce road miles. This has resulted in an increase in capacity, with the new trailers able to accommodate a total of 60 pallets (compared with 42 previously).

Tony Mannix, CEO of Clipper Logistics, said: “We are delighted with the addition of these new vehicles and trailers to our fleet. They are the largest and most environmentally conscious in the industry, demonstrating our commitment to reducing our impact on the environment across all areas of our business.”